Retention
by LittleMissySunshine
Summary: Dom's got a problem. Arthur is worried, and there is only one person he can think of to complete the team to fix this problem. However, she's nowhere near new to the group...and she especially isn't new to Arthur. Arthur/OC and Dom/Ariadne
1. A Long Way From Normal

Here's a new story from me! If you know me, you know my OCs are usually dancers, so I'm keeping with tradition for this story. I already have two chapters of this written, so I hope to have the other one out soon. If you ready any of my other stories, I'm hoping to update those soon as well, so keep checking my page, or story alert! Hope you enjoy "Retention"!

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><p>Dominic Cobb sat at the small, cozy coffee shop, waiting for his guest. He fidgeted with his hands, the coffee not helping calm his nerves. All he wanted was to return home, play with his kids, put them down to sleep, and relax in his own dreams. His own personal reality. All alone with her. Mal.<p>

Arthur walked into the coffee shop, and looked around for Dom. After locking eyes with him, he straightened his brown tie, and walked to the table. The two colleagues sat in silence while the barista brought Arthur a cup of coffee. Arthur sipped from his cup before starting conversation.

"So, are we going to talk about this?" Arthur started.

"What is there to talk about?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. You've been visiting Mal again, haven't you?"

Cobb stared into the air. He had been visiting his dead wife, but to admit that to Arthur would show it was his weakness.

"What if I have been? It's not like before, when I was risking the team's lives."

"You're hurting yourself, Dom. Living in Retention is only going to cause you to lose your grip on what is real and what isn't."

"I can take care of myself, Arthur. I have a grasp on this."

Arthur sipped his coffee again before continuing.

"Does Avery know?"

Dom breathed deeply. "No, why would she?"

"I thought you would have told her."

"Unless you told her, Arthur, which I would not put past you, she has no idea."

"You should tell her, Dom."

"What she doesn't know won't hurt her."

Dom threw his money on the table and grabbed his coat.

"I'll see you around, Arthur." he said as her stormed out.

Eames, Arthur, Ariadne, and Yusuf all met in the house they had dedicated to meeting. It was a small house, only one level. The group decided to purchase it after they all made the decision to remain in LA. It was a mutual decision to purchase the property, as a way for them to meet in the occasion they needed to retreat to the dream world. Arthur had called them to meet on this occasion.

Arthur stood up. "Guys, we have a problem."

Eames smirked. "Arthur if you're talking about the stick that is stuck up your ass, that's only a problem for you. It's entertainment for the rest of us."

Arthur glared at him. "I'm talking about Cobb. He's getting worse. He's living through Retention."

Ariadne looked puzzled. "What's he doing?"

"He's dreaming only to dream of Mal. That has become his reality."

"So what are we supposed to do about it?"

"There's only one way to permanently get rid of her." Eames added.

"And that is…?"

"Kill Mal in Dom's subconscious" Arthur said coldly.

"How can you do that?" Ariadne questioned further.

"We would need to have Dom asleep for a long period of time. We'd have to kill her on each level of his subconscious. Ariadne, you said she's on every floor of a building in his mind, correct?"

"Yeah, his subconscious is kind of like a hotel."

"We're going to need another extractor, if Dom is going to be distracted." Eames added.

Arthur sighed. "I may have an idea of who can help us."

Eames connected the dots. "Arthur, do you think she'll come?"

"He's her brother, Eames. My guess is she will."

Ariadne looked puzzled as Arthur walked into another room. "Who is he calling?"

"Dom's sister," Eames said. "Avery."

Avery walked as the 8 year-olds danced across her studio's dance floor.

"Toes out, girls. Toes out!" she said as they continued to move to the snapping of her fingers. The girls reached their final pose and smiled brightly. Avery smiled as well.

"Great job, ladies. Grab a drink, and be back in five."

The girls ran to their water bottles, as Avery's phone began to ring.

Arthur walked into the kitchen and took out his phone. He began to search through his contacts. Did he still have her number? Did he delete it to forget her?

No, he didn't. He reached her name.

Avery Cobb.

He sighed, and called her number.

_Here goes nothing_, he thought.

Avery looked at the name across her phone.

Arthur.

She sighed before accepting the call.

"Hello," her voice sounded shaky as she answered.

"Avery?"

"Yes, that's my name."

"It's Arthur,"

"No shit."

"This is serious, Ave. Dom's in trouble."

"What happened?"

"He…he's living in Retention."

"With Mal?"

"Who else would it be?"

"So, what exactly am I supposed to do about this?"

"We need your help. There's a team of us that wants to fix this, but we need a fifth. You were the first person I thought of."

"Arthur, I have a life here. I can't just fly to Paris-"

"We're in Los Angeles."

"How long have you been here?"

"About six months."

"And neither you nor my brother thought to call me and let me know this?"

"Your brother probably didn't want to concern you with this. I, on the other hand, thought you wouldn't answer your phone if I called."

"I would have answered, Arthur."

"And now I know this. But, please, Avery, meet me and the team for coffee. I know you love your brother more than anything, and he really needs our help."

"Text me a time and place and I'll be there."

"And Avery?""Yes?"

There was a brief pause. "It's nice to hear your voice again."

Avery hung up her phone, and waited for an incoming text from Arthur.

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><p>R&amp;R. Peace. Love. Lauren.<p> 


	2. Experimentation in Retention

Thank you for reading! Here's the next chapter.

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><p>Arthur, Ariadne, Eames, and Yusuf sat at the café where Arthur and Dom had previously met. It was busy, a typical Saturday afternoon.<p>

"So," Ariadne started. "What does she look like?"

"She's probably wearing heels," Eames started. "Brown hair, unless she dyed it. Medium length, unless she cut it."

He noticed Arthur staring into the distance. He looked to where Arthur was staring. He noticed a familiar face, ordering her coffee.

Avery stood there, wearing a grey short-sleeved sweater dress that hit mid thigh. Her patterned tights led to her black patent leather pumps. She looked over to the table and noticed Arthur staring, the same look he had given her when they had last seen each other. Eames gave her a friendly wave. She waved back and made her way to the table.

"Nice to see you, Ave" Eames greeted her as she took a seat.

"Thank you, nice to see you too." Her gaze switched to Arthur. "Hello, Arthur."

"Hello, Avery" he said. "As he said this, Avery's arms began to feel chilled. His voice always did that to her.

"So, who are the newbies?"

"This is Ariadne, an architect, and Yusuf, a chemist." Eames introduced.

"Very nice to meet you two. Now, what is going on with my brother?"

"His mind functions like a hotel." Ariadne started.

"On each floor is a different memory of Mal," Arthur added. "We need to kill her on each floor-"

"to erase her from his subconscious." Avery finished.

"Are you sure that will work?" Ariadne asked.

"Killing her in his subconscious means he can have memories, but not live in Retention. This means he won't be able to just dream about her. He will remember her, just not in his dreams." Avery explained.

"So you'll do it?" Eames asked. "You'll help us?"

"Here is where things get complicated," Avery started. "First, the question is whether or not I will do it. I _can_ get into my brother's subconscious. That doesn't mean _will_. Second, when I get there, the question is no longer _will_ I kill Mal, it is _can _I kill her. I want to stop my brother living in Retention, but I may not be able to kill her."

"Can I just ask a question?" Ariadne asked. "Sure, go ahead."

"What exactly is Retention?"

Avery looked at Arthur. "You haven't showed her Retention?"

"No, it's too risky."

Avery looked back to Ariadne. "Why don't I show you what Retention is?"

Arthur and Eames looked at each other,

"I don't know if that's such a good idea, Ave." Eames responded.

"You don't think Dom trained his sister to be smarter at dreaming than he is? It is possible to have a harmless retention dream. The point is to know how. Let's go back to your lab, and I'll enlighten Ariadne to the world my brother is living in."

Avery walked into the ranch style house with the others. Eames and Arthur began to set up the dream machines. Yusuf went to watch some television. Ariadne and Avery sat down, waiting to be hooked up to the machines. Avery smiled.

"It's been a long time since I've done this."

"How long?"

"About a year."

Arthur began to hook up the women to the machines. "You sure you're good to go under?" he asked.

"Give us five minutes. It shall only take that long."

The girls closed their eyes as they entered Avery's dream.

Ariadne and Avery found themselves on a warm beach. The setting was clear, no one was around. Ariadne saw two figures in the distance, a man and a woman. The man and woman were sitting on the shore line, laughing as the small waves would crash against their legs.

Avery walked until she was next to Ariadne.

"I probably should preface my Retention explanation by letting you know that Arthur and I used to be a 'thing'."

"I kind of guessed that. What happened?"

"Life got in the way. Now, Retention is reliving memories through dreams. This can be harmless: remembering something in order to gain information, to remember something you may have forgotten. When you lean on Retention to relive memories of, say, a dead loved one, that is when Retention becomes dangerous. When you begin to bring people back, you blur what is reality and what isn't, which is what my brother is doing. You have to be a very sane person to successfully dream using Retention and my brother is not very sane right now."

Ariadne thought for a moment. "So, how is this a Retention dream?"

Avery smiled. "Look closely at the two figures over there."

Ariadne looked closer, and began to recognize the facial features of both Avery and Arthur.

"I've never seen Arthur smile like that." Ariadne pointed out.

Avery sighed. "So I've been told by many."

"How long did you two date for?"

"Almost a year."

"How long has it been since you've seen him?"

Avery paused. "About ten months."

Just then, the sound of a French woman came into their ears.

"Almost done." Avery said. "Do you have anymore questions?"

"No, I think I understand it. I just hope Cobb will be alright with this."

"What he doesn't know we have planned won't hurt him."

Ariadne saw Avery's gaze, which was upon the figures of herself and Arthur in the distance. She watched as she relived her and Arthur, beginning to kiss, the two of them laughing underneath their embrace.

Ariadne noticed Avery's change of emotion. Avery looked to Ariadne, a glaze of anger in Avery's eyes.

"If this dream wasn't so close to ending," Avery said. "I would ask you to kill me right now."

Avery and Ariadne both awoke in the house. Avery ripped the tube from her arm and rushed into another room. Arthur tried to stop her, but failed.

"What happened?" he asked.

"I bet you already know." Ariadne said coldly.

Arthur became confused as Ariadne followed after Avery.

She found Avery standing in the kitchen, digging something out of her pocket. Avery pulled out a small, purple, wooden high-heeled shoe. She placed it on the table and pushed it down. She picked it up and placed on the table again, before pushing it over once more. She breathed a sigh of relief.

Ariadne looked worried. "Are you alright?"

Avery looked up at her, breathing deeply. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's just…damn, even the strongest and sanest of us can become weak at times. Dreams just have to find our blind spot and BAM! We're gone in a matter of seconds."

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><p>R&amp;R. Peace. Love. Lauren.<p> 


	3. Reunion

Hey guys! This chapter is a bit shorter, but the next one will be longer. I'm thinking of adding a slight Dom/Ariadne love angle in this story, and it's hinted at in this chapter. So, I hope you guys are cool with that. The story will still focus on the Arthur/Avery love story, though. Enjoy!

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><p>After regaining her sanity in the kitchen, Avery walked into the living room and sat next to Yusuf.<p>

"So, you're a chemist?"

"Yes, I am. What exactly are you?"

"I forge, I extract, sometimes I design. I just come along for the ride and help where I'm needed. So, listen, I need your help."

"With what?"

"I need to get two people asleep for a short amount of time. Probably an hour or so."

"That should be easy enough."

"But I need them asleep so I can go into their dreams to see exactly what is in their subconscious."

"Why do you need to do this?"

"First off, I want to get into my brother's mind to see for myself how bad his Retention really is. Second, I just really want to see what's going on in Arthur's mind."

"Why do you need Arthur's mind?"

Avery was getting annoyed. "I just need to see his dreams. Now, can you do it or not?"

"I'll formulate a compound. When do you need it by?"

"Tonight, please. From what I heard, Arthur told Dom I came to visit. He will be joining us for dinner."

Dom Cobb walked up the driveway, anxious about seeing his sister. He didn't want to face telling her about how he declined from when they had last seen each other. Arthur seemed to sound neutral on the phone when Dom had heard from him. He knew Arthur had genuinely loved his sister, but he agreed with Arthur when their relationship had begun to get in the way of work.

He straightened his jacket and rang the doorbell. Ariadne answered the door, and when Cobb saw her, he smiled. She was a breath of fresh air, a light in the dim world of dream sharing. Whenever he was around her, time seemed to pass slower, the way it did when Mal was around.

Ariadne smiled. "Hello, Cobb."

"Hello, Ariadne."

"Come on in."

Cobb walked in, and looked around the house.

"You guys cleaned up this place nicely."

"It was Arthur's doing."

Avery walked out of the kitchen into the room where Dom stood. She smiled.

"It's been too long, Dom." she said as she walked to her brother and embraced him with a hug.

"It's good to see you again, Ave. What brings you back?"

"I miss the dream world too much. Now, shall we have dinner?"

The group made their way to the dining room. With the food that had been in the house, Avery was able to through together a lasagna. Arthur brought it to the table as everyone began to take their seats. Dom sat at one head of the table, and Eames sat at the other. Yusuf and Ariadne subconsciously sat next to each other, leaving the two spots on the other side of the table. Avery realized what had just happened and blatantly rolled her eyes as she sat. Ariadne mouthed "Sorry" across the table as Arthur took his spot next to Avery. The group ate in silence until Eames decided to break the ice.

"So, Avery, how are the men in LA? Do they please you the same way our dear Arthur did?"

Arthur gulped the wine he had been drinking. Dom, Ariadne, and Yusuf all sat in shock, waiting to hear a response. Avery, who was about to take a bite of food, placed her full fork on her plate and turned to face Eames.

"For your information, Eames, I haven't been dating since Arthur and I went our separate ways. So, to answer your question, no."

"What happened to you two?" Eames pressed further. "I always caught you two sneaking off in the middle of missions, and in real life come to think of it."

Arthur wiped his mouth with his napkin. "We decided to go our separate ways."

Avery looked at Arthur in disgust. "_YOU_ decided to go _YOUR _own way. Our break up was anything but mutual."

"You said you wanted your dance career."

"In addition to working with you guys. I could have had the best of both worlds!"

"Leaving your own studio for multiple days at a time? _THAT'S _professional."

"You told me you didn't want me to become another Mal."

Dom stood up and stormed out.

"I'm going for a walk." he said.

"Shit," Avery muttered.

"What's wrong?" Eames asked.

"I had Yusuf develop me a compound that would knock him out. He'll be down in a few minutes, and the last thing I need is that happening outside."

Arthur slumped in his chair as she said this.

"What's wrong with him?" Eames asked again.

He looked at Avery's face. Her gaze shifted away from him.

"You drugged him, too?"

"Think of it as an experiment. We have an hour to get this done. Drag him into the living room. I'll meet you there."

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><p>R&amp;R. Peace. Love. Lauren.<p> 


	4. Dream Creeping

Here's chapter 4, everyone! It's a little less detail oriented that I thought I was going for, but I had a hard time figuring out how to put all the details I wanted into words. Some of what I wrote might be confusing, so I hope it wasn't too bad. Hope you guys like it!

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><p>The team fixed Cobb and Arthur up in two of the chairs in the living room.<p>

"How much time is left before they wake up?" Avery asked.

"45 minutes." Yusuf responded.

"Ok, give me 30 minutes for Dom, and set up 10 minutes for Arthur. I'm gonna need that 5 minute buffer."

"Alright, is Eames going with you?"

"No, I want Ariadne with me."

Avery and Ariadne hooked up to the dream sharing machine.

"I feel weird doing this. Will he know we're in there with him?" Ariadne asked.

"If he finds us." Avery said. "Think of it as dream creeping."

The two fell asleep and awoke in an elevator. Avery looked at the buttons.

"Now," she questioned. "Do I start at the top, or the bottom?"

Ariadne pushed the basement button. "Probably should get the worst over with first."

The elevator sent them down into the basement. Avery recognized the room.

"This hotel," Avery said as she stepped out of the elevator. "I've been here before. Dom wanted me to help him set up the suite for their anniversary."

Avery saw Mal sitting on the sofa, no yet noticing Avery or Ariadne. She motioned to Ariadne to move as slowly, quickly, and quietly as possible. They had not noticed that Dom had entered the room.

"Avery?" he questioned, noticing her.

"Shit," Avery mouthed to herself. She turned to face Dom and Mal, both of them now staring at her.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"Seeing how far gone you are. Arthur was right."

"What did he tell you?"

"Enough to concern me. I need to see more, now."

Avery walked quickly to the elevator, closing the door as she got in. She didn't know that Ariadne was in there as well, until she looked behind herself.

"God damn it, Ariadne," she breathed. "You scared me."

"Sorry, where to next?"

Avery and Ariadne spent the remainder of the time in Dom's mind exploring the rest of his subconscious. On each floor lived a different memory. The music of a French woman signaled the dream was headed toward collapsing upon itself.

Avery opened her eyes, and Ariadne awoke seconds later. Avery rubbed her eyes and took a few deep breaths.

"Now to Arthur," she said out loud. Ariadne began to hook herself up to the machine, but Avery stopped her.

"This one I need to do myself," she said.

Ariadne nodded and unhooked herself. Eames walked over to Avery. "You sure you will be alright?" he asked.

"As sure as I will every be." She closed her eyes and Yusuf started the machine.

Avery found herself on a street in the pouring rain. She observed her surroundings: tall buildings, taxi cabs, billboards surrounding her.

"I know this place," she said out loud.

She walked a block or so before finding what she had been looking for. She saw her predictions coming true.

Arthur stood on the corner across from her, and the figure next to him was herself. They had been in the middle of a job, and Arthur had stolen her away, the two of them sneaking off. Avery knew exactly the conversation that was coming. She found herself mailbox to hide behind. She knew Retention came in two different forms: dreamers participating in the dreams themselves, or dreamers watching the memories from afar. She had no idea which type Arthur was, and needed to make sure she could observe the entire scene. She began to listen in on the conversation, carefully thinking so she could note which type of Retention this was.

She watched as Arthur kissed her passionately in the rain, his arms locked on the small of her back, her arms around his neck. The kiss was broken, and the two smiled at each other.

"I love you, Avery." Arthur said.

"I love you, Arthur." the projection of Avery said.

"I want grow old with you Avery. I-"

"I feel the same way, Arthur."

"That's not just it though. I want to marry you. I know the whole cliché 'American dream', and I know that for us, it's a little different. I know you won't be the housewife, but you'll be my colleague. But I want the house, and the kids, and the white picket fence. I want it all."

Avery, still sitting behind her mailbox, knew how this conversation went. This conversation had been glued into her brain. Not only because this conversation meant the world to her, but because it was only two weeks before her and Arthur ended their relationship.

Avery knew, from the content of the conversation she had observed, that Arthur was reliving this memory in this subconscious. She knew that meant Arthur himself is watching the whole thing from somewhere in close proximity. Avery began to stand up, not caring if Arthur found her in his dream. She stood on the corner, across from the projections of herself and Arthur. She began to tear up as she knew the next part of the conversation.

The projection of herself smiled at Arthur. In unison, Avery and her projection said,

"Don't forget the stereotypical dog. It wouldn't be the true 'American dream' without it."

"Avery!" She heard Arthur's voice coming from her right. At this time, the projections of her and Arthur had resumed their embrace, kissing once again. Avery turned to her right, the tears streaming down her cheeks, her face forming a scowl. Her brown hair was soaked against her neck.

Arthur looked at her from across the street, pain forming in his face.

"What are you doing here, Ave?" he asked, as he crossed the street to her.

"Figuring out you're a lying bastard." she said.

"How did I lie to you?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe by breaking up with me, and months later living in Retention. You could have had me, Arthur. I was ready to marry you, I was ready to settle down and spend forever with you, and you gave it up. Now you're reliving the past?"

"Avery-"

"No, just stop it. Just stop it! I want out. I want out!"

Arthur continued to try to hold her back, but Avery turned to find a knife sitting on the mailbox. She walked over to the mailbox, took the knife in her hands, and, while Arthur continued to try to talk to her, stabbed herself in the chest.

Avery awoke, gasping for breath as she did. Eames and Yusuf rushed over to her.

"What the hell, Avery? You had a minute and a half left."

"I couldn't take it anymore, I needed out. Now let me go!" She ripped the tube out of her arm, and ran into the kitchen.

She reached the kitchen, digging her totem out of her pocket. She knocked down the shoe, and it knocked over just as it normally did. Out of frustration, Avery, the tears now streaming down her face again, picked up the totem and threw it across the kitchen. She slid down the cabinet behind her and let the tears fall as she sat on the floor.

Ariadne walked into the room, and put her arm around Avery. Avery leaned her head into Ariadne's shoulder as she cried.

Dom and Arthur woke up simultaneously. Arthur looked over to Dom, confused as to why he was asleep.

Dom looked to Arthur. "So you told Avery? About Mal?"

Arthur sighed. "She needed to know."

Arthur stood up from his chair, and went to Eames. "Where's Ave?"

Eames looked at him. "Kitchen, but it's probably not smart to go in there right now."

Arthur ignored Eames' warning and walked to the kitchen. He looked in to see Avery and Ariadne on the floor.

"Avery?" Arthur said, quietly.

Avery looked up, and Arthur was taken aback. He looked into her eyes, noticing the pain behind her brown beauties. Her eyes were red and swollen, obviously from crying quite a bit. But in those eyes, he noticed not only pain, but anger. Anger toward him. Toward what she had just seen in his subconscious.

Arthur took the hint from Ariadne's pleading eyes, and left the room.

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><p>R&amp;R. Peace. Love. Lauren.<p> 


	5. Five Steps Backward, One Step Forward

Chapter 5! Here we go!

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><p>Avery was trying to sleep, but that wasn't coming easily. She continued to toss and turn as the night went on. All she could think about was what she had seen. Dom's constant memories of Mal. And Arthur…Arthur's thoughts and memories of her.<p>

Eventually, enough was enough. Avery grabbed one of her pillows and walked to a room down the hall. She paused before she knocked on the door. She figured out that knocking was the only way any progress was going to get made. She knocked on the door. It took a few seconds, but Avery began to hear movement from behind the door. The door opened, and Arthur's figure appeared in the doorway. From the look of his face, he hadn't been sleeping either.

"I can't sleep." Avery said.

"Me neither. Want to come in?" Arthur opened the door a little extra to let her in. Avery came into the room. It reminded her of the apartment he had in London that she was far too familiar with.

Avery continued into the room and sat on Arthur's bed. She placed her pillow on the right side of the bed. To her surprise, he still slept on the same side of the bed he did when they were together. Arthur took a seat next to her.

"So," Avery started. "Who should talk first?"

"You. You know I'm not as talented with words as you are."

"Alright. So, I just want to know why you ended the relationship and then now you're falling into the same path my brother is on. It scared me, Arthur. I don't want to you to become him. So, if me being here is causing this, I'll pack my things and be on my way. I trust you to deal with Dom's issues."

"Avery, that's not the case. Have I missed you? Yes. Have I been living in Retention? No. That's the first vivid Retention dream I have had. Now let me explain everything to you. You have your own ambitions, some that don't involve this world. I left the relationship because I wanted you to be able to live out your own ambitions, not the ones your brother and I have."

"I never felt like I was being forced into anything, Arthur."

"Look at you. You have your own dance studio; you've done exactly what you wanted to do with your life."

"I could have done this with you."

Arthur knew she was right. He had no way to explain to her that he was scared. That he left their relationship, not because he wanted her to live her dreams. He knew she was "the one". He just wasn't convinced that she felt the same way. He knew she loved him, he just didn't know if it was as strong of a bond as he felt with her.

"Ave, I don't know what else to say-"

Avery picked up her pillow, and began to walk out of the room. "Well, I guess I better get going."

She walked out of the room, closing the door lightly behind her. Arthur ran his hands through his hair, sighing. What was supposed to be one step forward ended up being five steps backwards.

The next morning, Avery woke up after not sleeping more than an hour or so. She stumbled into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes. There, she found Dom, sitting at the island in the kitchen, eating a bowl of cereal, reading the latest newspaper. She grabbed a bowl and poured herself the same breakfast.

"How did you sleep?" Avery asked, beginning conversation.

"Fine," Dom said, coldly. He looked at her. "You look like hell."

"Thanks, bro. Means a lot."

"I take it you didn't sleep well."

"What gave it away?"

The two went silent for a few minutes, eating away at their cereal. Dom decided to break the silence.

"Avery, about the Retention-"

Avery interrupted. "You're really far gone, Dom. Further than I had originally thought."

"I can handle this."

"No, you can't. You're going to end up compromising an important job and end up harming one of your colleagues. What about Arthur, Eames, Yusuf?"

"They know the risks of the job."

"What about Ariadne?"

Dom looked up, and looked directly at Avery. She knew she had hit a nerve dropping Ariadne's name. She could tell there was a connection between the two of them, she just didn't know how deep it ran. She figured it out, and decided to use it to her advantage.

"You wouldn't be able to live with yourself if you put her in harm's way. Plus, if you ever want to pursue a romantic relationship with her, how are you going to do that if in your dreams, all you're thinking about is reliving your romance with your dead wife?"

Dom looked at Avery, who was giving him a look of concern. He knew she was right.

"Alright, so let's say I want to get out of this cycle," Dom proposed. "How do you think we can do this?"

"Well, it's going to be a long process. We're going to have to get into your subconscious, probably with a compound Yusuf will make. Then, myself, Eames, Arthur, and Ariadne will go in and begin to kill Mal on the various levels she is on, since your subconscious has the elevator complex. However, with Mal fighting us also comes you fighting us. Your subconscious is going to do everything it can to save her. If one of us dies during the fight, we'll end up waking up. If we kill you though, you'll go into limbo."

"So, you have to kill Mal on each level-"

"Without killing you."

"Is it possible?"

"Yes, it is possible. It will be a long process, and it may take multiple attempts, but we should be able to do it."

"You and Arthur are going to have to work together."

"I know."

"Are you willing to do that?"

"When it comes to your safety and sanity, I'm willing to do almost anything."

"When do you think we'll start?"

"Give me a few days to plan it out, and then we can get started, slowly but surely."

Avery stood up, taking her and Dom's empty bowls and putting them in the sink, and began to head out of the room.

"Ave?" Dom called to her.

"Yeah?"

"What do you think of Ariadne?"

Avery smiled at her brother. "She's fantastic, Dom. She's more compatible for you than Mal ever was."

"You think so?"

"I know so."

Avery walked out of the kitchen. Dom looked around the kitchen for a minute, then smiled to himself and went back to reading his paper.

* * *

><p>Sorry this has been so delayed! I've been super busy with school and everything, so I'm glad to be writing again. R&amp;R!<p>

XOXO,  
>Lauren<p> 


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